Chivas vs. Chivas soccer comes to Petco Park

“San Diego is a soccer town,” said Vasquez, who has a 7-12-4 MLS record in his first season. “They appreciate good soccer. There’s a history and tradition there, and for us we want to come and play a good game … We have to get the respect of the fans and hope it opens some doors for us in the future.

“It’s a great opportunity for us. There have been teams in MLS who played against Manchester United and Real Madrid (this summer), and for us this is a game at that level.”

The motivation for Chivas of Guadalajara is slightly different: Don’t lose to what is perceived as an inferior product. Don’t lose to your baby bro.

A year ago, these teams met at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena for the inaugural “ChivaClasico,” as it’s called. Chivas of Guadalajara won 2-0.

“We have a lot of respect for our U.S. fans, and we’re going to try to win this game without any question,” said Chivas coach Jose Luis Real, whose team opened a four-game U.S. exhibition tour earlier this month with a 1-0 loss against the MLS expansion Philadelphia Union. “We’re very aware that this is a very important game for us. But we also would like to have this game when we don’t have such a tight schedule in Mexico, so that the entire first team can play 90 minutes.

“But there are no excuses.”

Padilla, the one guy who has played for both teams, offered this perspective: “We don’t want to lose, either.”